{"id":1139445,"date":"2021-10-26T10:16:50","date_gmt":"2021-10-26T08:16:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/asc-aqua.org\/?p=139445&source_id=139445&target_id=1139445"},"modified":"2024-10-16T10:13:59","modified_gmt":"2024-10-16T08:13:59","slug":"how-were-helping-aquaculture-lead-by-example-on-climate-change","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/asc-aqua.org\/blog\/how-were-helping-aquaculture-lead-by-example-on-climate-change\/","title":{"rendered":"How we’re helping aquaculture lead by example on climate change"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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A blog by Robert Parker, ASC’s Senior Co-ordinator – Greenhouse Gas Emissions<\/em><\/p>\n

When\u00a0the\u00a0United Nations Climate Change Conference<\/a>\u00a0(COP26) takes\u00a0place in Glasgow\u00a0this November, it\u00a0will be\u00a0the 26th\u00a0meeting\u00a0following the establishment of the\u00a0UN\u00a0Framework Convention on Climate Change at Rio de Janeiro in 1992,\u00a0and\u00a0after so many years\u00a0real action\u00a0is needed more than ever.\u00a0That has been made abundantly\u00a0after\u00a0another\u00a0year marked by extreme weather events and\u00a0record-breaking\u00a0temperatures\u00a0around the world,\u00a0and the stark warnings of this\u00a0summer\u2019s\u00a0report\u00a0by the\u00a0Intergovernmental Panel\u00a0on Climate Change (IPCC)<\/a>.\u00a0There\u00a0is no more time to wait:\u00a0dramatic action\u00a0to reduce greenhouse gas emissions\u00a0(GHGs)\u00a0is needed now\u00a0if we are to\u00a0avoid\u00a0catastrophic damage to\u00a0ecological and human systems.<\/p>\n

The impacts of our food<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s estimated that food systems account for between a quarter and a third of global GHGs.\u00b9<\/span>\u00a0That is similar to the combined emissions of all the world\u2019s cars, trucks, trains, ships, and planes. And while global energy and transport sectors are undergoing technological\u00a0advancements\u00a0that improve efficiency and reduce\u00a0their GHGs, emissions from food systems continue to increase.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Most emissions from global food systems come from the production of animal protein.\u00a0While\u00a0the use of fossil fuels and electricity on farms\u00a0makes up part of this impact,\u00a0there are even larger sources of emissions in food systems:\u00a0methane from the digestive processes of ruminant animals like cows or from manure management;\u00a0nitrous oxide from the use (and overuse) of chemical fertilizers to grow\u00a0feed\u00a0crops;\u00a0and emissions associated with the clearing of land for\u00a0feed\u00a0crops and grazing.\u00a0In fact,\u00a0three quarters\u00a0of the world\u2019s agricultural land is used to feed animals\u00a0rather than humans<\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0This demand\u00a0contributes to\u00a0the loss of\u00a0millions of\u00a0hectares of forest<\/a>\u00a0every year\u00a0along with\u00a0the\u00a0carbon sinks they once represented.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Clearing land for feed crops and grazing is a major source of emissions<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Knowledge is power<\/h3>\n

The\u00a0farmed seafood\u00a0industry needs be part of the climate change solution, and we need to start thinking of \u2018responsible aquaculture\u2019\u00a0as also\u00a0meaning \u2018low GHG aquaculture\u2019.\u00a0Whether it is shrimp from a pond, mussels from the coast, or trout from a lake, it\u2019s critical that producers know their carbon footprint and can demonstrate that their products and their production systems fit in a carbon-constrained world.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Many seafood systems\u00a0already have\u00a0low rates of GHG emissions compared to land-based animal protein sources.\u00a0Wild-caught\u00a0anchovies and other small pelagic fishes and farmed bivalves are among the most GHG-efficient sources of protein globally\u00a0and average emission rates across the aquaculture industry are\u00a0lower than\u00a0those from\u00a0livestock.<\/span>\u00b2<\/span>\u00a0For others, we can find\u00a0why emissions are higher and work towards solutions to reduce them.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Aquaculture’s contribution<\/h3>\n

The aquaculture industry can make a big contribution to reducing global emissions by providing lower GHG food alternatives to land-based livestock.\u00b3<\/span>\u00a0This\u00a0requires not just minimizing emissions on the farm but also avoiding high emitting activities all along the product supply chain. That means\u00a0looking back at the fisheries, farms, and mills that supply aquafeeds, and\u00a0also\u00a0looking forward to the\u00a0processing, packaging, and\u00a0distribution of a product on its way to a consumer’s plate, and finding climate-responsible actors all along the chain.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

ASC has incorporated GHGs and climate change into our standards over the years in different ways. Our standards for salmon, seabass and seabream, flatfish, and tropical\u00a0marine\u00a0finfish all require\u00a0reporting feed- and farm-related GHG emissions. Energy efficiency measurements and reporting are required across numerous standards. And we have restrictions on both\u00a0mangrove\u00a0deforestation\u00a0and on\u00a0the\u00a0use of soy and palm\u00a0aquafeed ingredients\u00a0associated with deforestation.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Our plans for more action<\/h3>\n

In 2021, though,\u00a0we need to go further. ASC\u00a0seeks\u00a0to\u00a0transform aquaculture towards environmental sustainability and social responsibility\u00a0and if responsible aquaculture\u00a0today\u00a0means low GHG aquaculture\u00a0then\u00a0we need to step up.\u00a0We\u2019re ready to do just that, and there\u2019s a lot that we\u2019re planning.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This year,\u00a0I\u00a0started\u00a0\u00a0as\u00a0ASC\u2019s\u00a0first\u00a0Senior Coordinator for Greenhouse Gas Emissions\u00a0and began a process\u00a0to consistently measure and\u00a0characterize the GHG impact of aquaculture systems around the world.\u00a0<\/span>We are firm believers in the importance of data to tackle these big problems,\u00a0which is why we ask farms to\u00a0transparently report their performance, but we also think that farms deserve help with this.\u00a0Our\u00a0online\u00a0GHG\u00a0tools\u00a0will\u00a0support the industry with more open measuring and reporting of GHG emissions.\u00a0These tools are being developed\u00a0using the best methods and data available, and following best practice from scientific literature.\u00a0And of course, in line with ASC\u2019s commitment to transparency,\u00a0outputs\u00a0of this work will be made available so other researchers can use\u00a0them\u00a0too.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Consistency<\/h3>\n

We are\u00a0also\u00a0working to improve consistency. Our different standards were developed over a long period of time and currently include varying GHG and energy use requirements. This is something we\u00a0will be\u00a0changing with the launch of the aligned Farm Standard, which will cover all ASC certified species. This will ensure that all certified farms\u00a0have to\u00a0meet the same requirements when it comes to GHG emissions and energy usage.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When world leaders meet in Glasgow the focus will be on the large-scale political action needed\u00a0to fight climate change, and rightly so. But\u00a0we must also remember that\u00a0fighting the climate crisis will require change in every aspect of our lives\u00a0and at every level. That means every\u00a0industry must change. At ASC we\u2019re determined to help make sure the aquaculture industry is leading by example.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00b9 Vermeulen et al.<\/span><\/span><\/span>,<\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0(2012),\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>https:\/\/www.annualreviews.org\/doi\/abs\/10.1146\/annurev-environ-020411-130608<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>;\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>Crippa et al.,\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>(<\/span><\/span><\/span>2021<\/span><\/span><\/span>),<\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s43016-021-00225-9
\n\u00b2 Gephart et al<\/span><\/span><\/span>., (2021),\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41586-021-03889-2<\/span><\/span><\/span>;\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>,\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>Poore and Nemecek<\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0(<\/span><\/span><\/span>2018), https:\/\/www.science.org\/doi\/10.1126\/science.aaq0216\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>
\n\u00b3 Hoegh-Guldberg et al., (2019),\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>WRI<\/span><\/span><\/span> https:\/\/dev-oceanpanel.pantheonsite.io\/sites\/default\/files\/2019-09\/19_HLP_Report_Ocean_Solution_Climate_Change_final.pdf\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>
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